Measuring and dispensing containers



1 13])o 12, 1957 KATZ MEASURING AND DISPENSING CONTAINERS Filed Feb. 3, 1955 .I II |II I]. I .I IIII 010 muum u I m [III I II United States Patent 3 Claims.

This invention relates to measuring and dispensing containers of the carton type designed to hold and to measure and dispense varying quantities of the content of the carton, including particularly various granulated materials such as washing powders; or staples, such as sugar, cornstarch, and like products.

A primary object of the invention is to provide a container of the type mentioned, the main container body of which is formed from a single blank of stock providing for the various parts to be folded into a container section to securely package selected commercial quantities of material, in association with a slidable tray, having a plurality of compartments, to receive and dispense different measured quantities or" the contents of the main containersection.

Another more specific object is to provide for associa- 00 tion with the main container section a tray section supported in relationship to the bottom of such container section so as to provide, in one adjustment, an efiicient closure for the container, with provision for receiving material in measured amounts delivered'thereto from the main section and to dispense the material in various quan titiesthrough the common discharge opening in the bottom of the tray Without loss or overflow of the materialin the main container section when the tray is selectively moved outwardly.

Another objectof the invention is to provide a container of the type mentioned of simplified and durable construction, and which can be made and filled economically so that it will be acceptable commercially as a highly satisfactory device for packaging various products.

Other specific advantages of the invention will appear from the following detailed description taken in connection with the accompanying drawing, in which:

Figure 1 is a top plan view of the container in closed or sealed position;

Figure 2 is a front elevation;

Figure 3 is a left end view in elevation;

Figure 4 is a vertical section taken substantially on the line 4-4 of Figure 1;

Figure 5 is a vertical section taken substantially on the line 5-5 of Figure 2;

Figure 6 is a horizontal cross-sectional view taken substantially on the line 6-6 of Figure 2;

Figure 7 is a top plan view of the tray member removed from its support;

Figure 8 is a detailed view of the lower portion of the container illustrating the position of the tray member when adjusted for discharge; and

Figure 9 is a view in vertical section of substantially 65 the same parts illustrated in Figure 8, with the tray in a similar position as illustrated in Figure 3.

The main container body A is blanked out of suitable material such as paperboard usually employed for the packaging materials such as those heretofore mentioned 70 by way of example. The necessary parts for forming the main container section, its top closure, the bottom inlit with the top section.

2 clined wall, and the tray supporting strap are blanked out of the stock in an integral piece. This blank includes a central section, which when folded forms the walls of the main rectangular section, namely, the front wall it), right and left side Walls 11, and the back wall 12. This section is' bent at right angles at the corners and'an extension of one of the sided walls is extended to form a vertical lip 13 which underlies a vertical edge of the adjacent wall section and is glued or otherwise secured thereto.

Each of the Walls of the main section is extended at its respective top, providing the underlying and overlying top fiaps forming the conventional closure B for this type of carton.

Each side wall at its bottom is extended forming rectangular pieces which are bent inwardly to form a' horizontal section 14, and again bent upwardly to form an inclined section 15, the upper edge of which is bent to a vertical position to form a lip 16. The front and back walls at the respective lower edge are formed with inwardly extending lips 17 which overlie the horizontal section 14.

it will be understood that these parts are glued'or otherwise secured along their overlapping edges to form tight joints therebetween to prevent fine or granulated material from sifting out of the container.

The formation ofthe sections 14 and 15 at each 'side of the bottom providea central discharge opening, and also sloping of the walls 15 to facilitate the discharge of the carton contents through the discharge opening C.

As shown in the drawing, the front and back walls are extended to provide centrally disposed rectangular parts which depend from said walls to form sections 18, and are then bent inwardly at their lower ends and overlapped and secured together to form a supporting wall 19 for the tray D which is slidable therein.

The tray D includes a main section blanked from the stock in one piece to form the top 29, front wall 21, back wall 22 and end walls 23. The top wall isslit transversely and the ends turned down to form a vertical wall at one side of the central opening C.

A complementary bottom section 24 is form'e'd to inter- This section'is slit to form a central opening by turning up at one side of the slip a lip to form a vertical wall at one side of the opening. The end walls or" the top and bottom sections overlap to form the ends of the tray of a double thickness to give rigidity to the tray member.

One of the upturned walls 25 of the bottom section at the side of the central opening is of sufiicient length to project as at 26 above the plane of the top. This projecting part of the wall acts as a stop to limit the outward and inward movement of the tray.

The measuring receptacles are mounted within the central opening of the tray, and it has been found that a convenient and economical way to construct these measuring compartments is to form the outer one 27 from a single strip of stock bent into a generally rectangular shape with the ends overlapping and secured together as shown (Figure 7). This outer measuring member is seated in the central opening of the tray and its walls are secured to the vertical Walls 25 of the top and bottom sections at the sides of the central opening. V

A second measuring compartment 28 is formed in a similar manner, but of less cross-sectional area. This latter compartment is then secured in place centrally of the member 27.

From the foregoing description, it will be understood that, when the package is in closed position, the opening of the measuring compartments will be over the horizontal wall 19 of the strap member supporting the tray, thus forming a closure at the bottom of the package. As

originally packaged, the tray may be sealed in place if desired by a pressure sensitive tape. When in closed position, all of the measuring compartments will be in a position to receive material to their full capacity. If it is desired to dispense the smallest quantity, the tray is moved outwardly only to the extent that the opening in the first measuring container extends beyond the edge of the closure member 19. Further movement of the tray outwardly will permit discharge of the contents of the first and second measuring compartments, and full withdrawal will permit discharge of the contents of the three I compartments. Thewall 26 abutting against the edge of the opening limits the movement of the tray when it has been moved to full discharge position. Additional measuring compartments may be added if more selective dispensing of measured quantities of the material is de-,

sired.

The extent of withdrawal of the tray may be shown by lines or other marking on a wall of thetray to indicate the quantities to be dispensed at each position of the tray.

What is claimed is:

1. A measuring and dispensing container of the class described, comprising in combination a main container section of rectangular horizontal cross-section having a top closure and a discharge opening at the bottom center thereof, a tray member of rectangular horizontal crosssection supported below the bottom of said main section,

a measuring compartment in the center of said tray having 'areceiving opening at the top-registering with the dis charge opening in said 'main section and having a discharge opening at the bottom, said measuring compartment of the tray element being divided into adjacent sub-compartments formed from continuous strips of longitudinal material folded to generally rectangular form 'and seated in the central opening of the tray member,

and a support for said tray having an underlying part which forms a closure for said discharge opening of said measuring compartment when the tray is in normal rest position, said tray being movable in said support to open the discharge openings of said measuring compartment to discharge a measured quantity of the contents of the main section of the container.

2. A measuring and dispensing container of the class described, comprising in combination a main container section of rectangular horizontal cross-section, said main section comprising four side walls and having a top closure formed from over-lapping flaps at the upper ends of the side walls, a discharge opening at the bottom center of the main section flanked by inclined walls formed from an integral piece of stock with the walls of the main container section, a tray member of rectangular horizontal cross-section supported below the bottom of said main section, a measuring compartment in the center of said tray having a receiving opening at the top registering with the discharge opening in said main section and having a discharge opening at the bottom, and a support for said tray having an underlying part which forms a closure for said discharge opening of said measuring compartment when the tray is in normal rest position, said tray being movable in said support to open the discharge opening of said measuring compartment to discharge a measured quantity of the content of the main section of the container.

3. A measuring and dispensing container of the class described, comprising in combination a main container section of rectangular horizontal cross-section having a top closure and a discharge opening at the bottom center thereof, a tray member of rectangular horizontal crosssection supported below the bottom of said main section, a measuring compartment in the center of said tray having a receiving opening at the top registering with the dissupport to open the discharge opening of said measuring compartment to discharge a measured quantity of th contents of the main section of the container.

References Cited in the file of patent UNITED STATES PATENTS,

308,542 White Nov. 25, 1884 7 2,120,566 Matter June 14, 1938 2,131,831 Aldrich Oct. 4, 1938 2,162,286 Siefert June 13, 1939 2,323,565 Peters July 6, 1943 2,505,697 Vomacka Apr. 25, 1950 

